Study finds TV trumps exercise or reading during summer months

Updated:
Tuesday, June 17, 2014 4:31 PM EDT

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By Alex TretbarProvided by

If you think our nation is hopelessly addicted to television now, then get a load of this: Today, set-top box maker, Roku, revealed the results from an omnibus study it commissioned looking at television/viewing behavior during the summer months. The survey found that TV sits at the very top of the list of favorite summertime activities, more popular than such tried and true sunny-weather rituals such as “going outside” and “playing sports.”

As a result, Roku has kicked off its Summer of Endless Streaming sweepstakes, which gives contestants a chance to enter via Facebook to win a new Roku Streaming Stick (the HDMI version) and $200 worth of VUDU movie credits – so one lucky winner can watch even more TV.

The commissioned omnibus survey found that, when asked what they do on summer days, a leading 60 percent of respondents choose to watch their favorite TV show when deciding what to do on a typical summer day. Reading came in second (47 percent), followed by shopping (33 percent), jogging or hiking (19 percent), and attending a sporting event (16 percent). An additional 80 percent reported that they have chosen to stay in and watch their favorite TV show on a perfectly nice summer day – 43 percent of them even admitted to making up an excuse to avoid embarrassment. 92 percent of those surveyed said they keep up with their favorite shows even while traveling – some, in fact, seize their trip as a prime opportunity to catch up on shows that they’ve fallen behind on.

Roku’s social media manager, Melissa Morell, claims we are currently in a “golden age” of television, largely because of the plethora of easily accessible streaming choices available today. The simple and straightforward interfaces of devices such as Roku give viewers across all ages and levels of technological know-how a streamlined and user-friendly experience, and a place for all of their video content to live.

It’s important to bear in mind that this study was commissioned by Roku. Even still, these results are indicative of the rising popularity of television watching as it becomes increasingly easy to access a growing catalog of on-demand content. As younger watchers grow up in an age when video on-demand is the norm, what might we have to do to make sure they get outside and enjoy … ya know … real life?